Republican candidates debates

Following the third of the Republican presidential candidate debates taking place in Boulder, Colorado, there were some stand out moments amongst the candidates. Some attempted to have their defining campaign moment, others threw punches, there were attacks on the anchors, and Donald Trump did Donald Trump things. Here is a brief description of some of the exchanges.

EconomyThe Economy was supposedly the main theme of the debate, with candidates laying out their vision for the future of America. Senator Mark Rubio lamented the state of the economy and its lack of well-paying jobs that were being created for hard-working Americans. Donald Trump rather predictably praised the reduction in corporation taxes, and Carly Fiorina explained how she felt the current economy was ran by big business for the benefit of the wealthy not the poorest in society. It looked as though on the crowded platform these three engaged in their own debate, side-lining the other candidates.

Bush vs Rubio

Jeb Bush seemingly put Marco Rubio in his line of fire, criticizing his attendance of senatorial debate whilst on
the campaign trail. Rubio deflected the attack, claiming his campaign was for the future of America and refused to be drawn into retaliation. Chris Christie took advantage of the anti-Bush rhetoric and lamented the former Governor of Florida for his recent comments on fantasy sports. There was some substance to the claims by Bush as figures show a missed vote percentage in the 34% ballpark. However, this fails to take into account the campaigns of then senators Barack Obama and current Secretary of State John Kerry, both of whom missed between sixty and seventy percent of both votes, so the numbers suggest Rubio is doing relatively well in that regard.

Ben Carson and Mannatech

A question aimed at the former surgeon focused on his involvement and apparent endorsement of a product which recently settled a $7 million claim for deceptive marketing. Whilst there were some endorsements of the product on the part of Carson who stated he took the pill and did some speeches for the company, he denied that he endorsed the drug as a treatment for serious illness. This was reaffirmed by Angie Holan of PolitiFact.

Carly Fiorina Targets Hilary Clinton
The former Hewlett-Packard CEO seemed determined to use her position as the only female candidate to her advantage. She took aim at former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton for her praise of the jobs program under President Obama claiming that during the first term of his regime ninety two percent of jobs lost were lost to women. This was a direct attack on Hilary Clinton who has sought to present herself as the champion of women in her quest to become the first woman to sit in the main chair of the Oval Office. Quite frankly, the claim is seemingly obscene. During President Obama’s first administration figures suggest the creation of four hundred thousand jobs so none of a ‘lost’ percentage could be attributed to women.

With these being only a few of the highlights from the debate, we look forward to more of Donald Trump’s pearls of wisdom at the next debate.

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